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Fact-finding missions
Last night, I did something I seldom do these days. I sat through about 30 minutes of punditry on CNN to get a sense of how the mainstream media is spinning Sen. Obama's trip to the Middle East.
One CNN house commentator, David Gergen, with whom I usually agree, said that Obama made his "first mistake" of his campaign not by meeting with Iraq Prime Minister Maliki, but by divulging a private conversation in which Maliki agreed with the presumptive Democratic candidate that it's time for a timetable, and that 2010 is as good a deadline for withdrawal as any.
"He's (Obama) in no position to negotiate withdrawal. He's not the commander-in-chief," Gergen said. A network staff reporter then responded by saying that Obama is "presumptuous" not presumptive, and that the trip overseas was intended to be a "fact-finding mission" only. Given what this country has done with "facts," over the past eight years, and all the two-bit fact counterfeiters, that contention is laughable.
The larger issue is what is Obama supposed to do, when confronted with what has come to be called, euphemistically, the "situation on the ground"-- play deaf, dumb, and blind?
Does Maliki have to serve Bush with an eviction notice to make it any more obvious that the country we've occupied for the past six years no longer wants us there?
Have we had so much secrecy, during the Bush years, that an attempt at openness, on the part of a prospective president, looks like presumptousness to us? The obdurate insistence by the mainstream media of maintaining control of information by selectively spinning it is, ultimately, no different than the campaign of redaction, and revision, it is seeking to expose.
If former secretary of state, Colin Powell, went shopping for uranium in Niger before accepting that there was any, and if Dick Cheney went hunting for weapons of mass destruction before committing us to an irrelevant, and seemingly endless, military engagement, this country, and planet, would be in far better shape.
Likewise, if secretarys of state, as well as our current president, paid attention to facts on the ground, we'd be out of Iraq by now, and a strike against Iran would be no more imminent than walking on Mercury. Last night, I did something I seldom do these days. I sat through about 30 minutes of punditry on CNN to get a sense of how the mainst... more -
Alice Cooper comes down on celebrities who publicly support politicians
The star is sick of musicians and actors commenting on current affairs, and doesn't understand why their opinions are taken seriously.
(quite frankly, neither do i...)
He says, "I never understood rock 'n' roll's connection with politics. And I've got to be honest with you, rock 'n' rollers can take themselves so damn seriously - all that, "What I wrote will change the world'. We can't keep giving them this credibility, as if they know more than anybody else. We don't. That's why we're rock 'n' rollers."
And Cooper believes star supporters can even hurt an important campaign - as fans might vote for a politician purely because of the celebrity connection.
He adds, "If a famous star decides that he's going to back a certain politician, all of a sudden the people that really don't know anything about politics, but really like his movies, they go, 'Well, I'll vote for him because the star knows about these things.' He doesn't."
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isnt that the intention of any endorsement? to round up ignorant voters and make the choice for them? like Rolling Stone and Obama?
and how many of these rock n rollers are registered republican and plan to vote for McCain, but wont dare say it publicly?
***Also important to mention that Cooper has very publicly supported Bush, and called musicians on the Kerry band wagon "treasonous morons".
The star is sick of musicians and actors commenting on current affairs, and doesn't understand why their opinions are taken seriously.... more -
Wind-energy dreams gain altitude
Wind turbines fill the horizon along Interstate 70 west of Salina, Kan. The state is said to have the third-best wind of any state for such projects, and that is raising the hopes of renewable-energy advocates.
That breeze you’re feeling may be the sudden gust of news about wind energy, until now almost a boutique producer of power in America.
Oilman T. Boone Pickens began flooding the media this month with a $58 million campaign to sell a plan to build thousands of wind turbines. He wants wind to grow from supplying 1 percent of the nation’s electricity to 20 percent in a decade.
This week, global-warming guru Al Gore announced a plan to spend at least a trillion dollars in the next 10 years on renewable energy, including wind, to break the nation’s fossil-fuel addiction cold turkey.
And we’re smack in the middle of those plans.
Kansas has the third-best wind of any state, and Missouri’s tiny Rock Port is winning national attention as the first town in America to operate solely on wind power.
Pickens’ plan could be wind-spun gold for the wind-tunnel corridor, stretching from central Texas to the Canadian border, as many thousands of jobs are created to build turbines, erect wind farms and string transmission lines to the East and the West Coasts.
“I’m over the moon about it,” said Nancy Jackson, executive director of the Lawrence-based Climate and Energy Project, a nonprofit climate-research group.
“This gives Kansans a chance to stay home and have jobs where they have grown up, which is great,” Jackson said.
Of course, everyone agrees Pickens’ and Gore’s plans are darned ambitious, and some are questioning whether they can be accomplished so quickly.
“This is not business as usual,” said Christine Real de Azua, a spokeswoman for the American Wind Energy Association, the national trade association for the industry. “To make this work, clearly we would need a different set of policies in place.”
Real de Azua said it is exciting that the energy crisis is suddenly up front and center in America, but Washington does not usually move fast on energy issues.
Both Pickens and Gore believe the energy crisis should be the No. 1 issue of the election — one reason for the timing of their own energy campaigns.
Pickens has said that to implement his plan within 10 years, both Congress and the White House must treat the current energy situation as “a national emergency and take immediate action.”
That goes beyond what either presidential candidate has said, but both expressed support this week.
“Pickens’ proposal to break our addiction to foreign oil and significantly ramp up our investments in renewable energy is precisely in line with what Obama has proposed in his comprehensive energy plan,” said Debbie Mesloh, communications director for Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign in Missouri.
In a statement Thursday, Obama said he strongly agreed with Gore that “we cannot drill our way to energy independence, but must fast-track investments in renewable sources of energy. … It’s a strategy that will create millions of new jobs that pay well and cannot be outsourced.”
Sen. John McCain said in an interview with The Star on Thursday that moving to renewable energy is a “good idea” that should be studied. To move away from coal-fired power plants, he said, he favors building at least 45 nuclear power plants by 2030. Wind turbines fill the horizon along Interstate 70 west of Salina, Kan. The state is said to have the third-best wind of any state for... more -
Politicians don't wear shorts in fear of exposing robotic limbs
Presidential candidate Rex Vanderwoodsen has a theory that politicians do not wear shorts because they fear exposing robotic body which would lead the general public to believe that they are in fact Cyborgs. Presidential candidate Rex Vanderwoodsen has a theory that politicians do not wear shorts because they fear exposing robotic body whic... more
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Pensioner who took cannabis fights eviction
A WHEELCHAIR-BOUND pensioner who used cannabis to ease the pain of arthritis has fought off an Appeal Court bid by her landlord to evict her from her sheltered home.
Nova Batchelor, 61, of Jubilee Close, Ilfracombe, North Devon, suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, osteoporosis, heart disease and has previously had two heart attacks.
She faced eviction action after she was handed an 18-month jail term in May last year at Exeter Crown Court for offences of possessing cannabis, having about 7.5 grammes of cocaine with intent to supply and money laundering.
Her landlord, North Devon Homes, argued that it meant she had to go – but three of the nation's most senior judges yesterday disagreed.
Lady Justice Arden said North Devon Homes had failed to prove that Mrs Batchelor was a nuisance to her neighbours and the pensioner had sworn to give up cannabis, even though she found it “useful” in fighting the pain of her various medical conditions.
Mrs Batchelor also only pleaded guilty to the cocaine offence on the basis that the drugs had been left at her flat without her permission just hours before a police raid on her home in September 2005. She said she “does not agree with such drugs”.
Judge Neligan, sitting at Torquay County Court in February this year, allowed Mrs Batchelor to stay in her home and refused to grant North Devon Homes a possession order.
Lady Justice Arden, sitting at London's Civil Appeal Court with Lord Justice Dyson and Lord Justice Wall, yesterday dismissed the landlord's challenge to that ruling.
Judge Neligan had dismissed North Devon Homes' case that Mrs Batchelor was guilty of anti-social behaviour and her neighbours were suffering “annoyance, inconvenience or harassment”.
He said the cocaine offence was “at the lower end of the scale” and observed that, if every cannabis-using tenant was faced with a possession action, the courts would “inevitably be swamped” with such cases.
North Devon Homes had argued that Judge Nelligan's ruling sent out an “erroneous message” that drug-using tenants would be tolerated and that cannabis use, although criminal, was “not sufficiently serious” to justify eviction. Mrs Batchelor, the company argued, had been guilty of “serious misbehaviour” and the decision to let her stay “drove a coach and horses” through the terms of her tenancy agreement.
But Russell James, for Mrs Batchelor, said she had only ever used cannabis for medicinal reasons and had stopped using it after the police raid.
Her medical conditions, quite apart from her wheelchair-bound state, meant she “clearly requires” her sheltered home and Judge Neligan's decision to let her stay was an exercise of “good common sense by a man of the world”, he added.
Dismissing North Devon Homes' appeal, Lord Justice Wall said Judge Neligan had, in his “careful” judgment, “meticulously” weighed up all the evidence and “was entitled to deal with Mrs Batchelor's convictions as he did”. A WHEELCHAIR-BOUND pensioner who used cannabis to ease the pain of arthritis has fought off an Appeal Court bid by her landlord to evi... more -
Bob Novak Hits Pedestrian--Drives Away!
Thanks to a fellow BIKER though--Novak was apprehended! This all took place on K Street--famous LOBBY to all the LOBBYING industry.
The question is, which LOBBY did NOVAK hit in his BLACK CORVETTE? "Pedestrians are so Pedestrian"... Thanks to a fellow BIKER though--Novak was apprehended! This all took place on K Street--famous LOBBY to all the LOBBYING industry. ... more -
IDF soldier who shot blindfolded Palestinian sent back to unit; deemed not dangero...
An Israeli soldier detained after being filmed opening fire at a bound and blindfolded Palestinian from close range has been released from custody.
The soldier was sent back to his unit after lawyers argued he did not pose a danger to anyone, Israeli reports said. Obviously the lawyers do not consider Palestinians to be ‘anyone’.
He was shown firing a rubber coated bullet at the detainee’s foot as other soldiers stand around watching.
The footage was taken by a Palestinian girl living nearby and released Israeli human rights campaigners.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak condemned the incident saying it was “grave and wrong” and that the military would exact the full extent of the law. Full extent of the law apparently means being returned to active duty so he might kill a Palestinian next time rather than just wounding him.
Human rights group B’Tselem released the footage on Sunday. The shooting happened two weeks earlier in Nilin in the West Bank, scene of frequent Palestinian anti-occupation demonstrations.
Israeli press reports say the soldier told investigators that his commander had told him to shoot the Palestinian, who has been identified as Ashraf Abu Rahma. Why wasn’t the commander ‘investigated’ as well?
The Israeli army issued a statement calling the incident “grave” and in “direct contradiction” of its values. yet nothing was done about it…
Mr Abu Rahma was treated for a bruised toe by army medics and has not filed a complaint with the military. The military would deny receiving such a complaint even if it was filed. They would then proceed to deny it as they have done in other instances.
B’Tselem has distributed dozens of cameras to West Bank Palestinians with the aim of recording human rights abuses by the Israeli army and Jewish settlers.
Last month, it released footage showing an apparent assault by masked stick-wielding settlers against Palestinian farmers. An Israeli soldier detained after being filmed opening fire at a bound and blindfolded Palestinian from close range has been released ... more -
President Bush Quits Fighting Housing Bill
President Bush dropped his opposition today to a broad housing package aimed at boosting the sagging economy. It was a dramatic split for Bush and congressional Republicans, many of whom are angrily opposed to the housing legislation, which they call a handout for irresponsible homeowners and unscrupulous lenders. President Bush dropped his opposition today to a broad housing package aimed at boosting the sagging economy. It was a dramatic split ... more
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Sudani president defiant despite accusations of genocide
During a rare visit to Darfur Sudan's president Omar al-Bashir said he is "not worried" by International Criminal Court accusations against him. The Sudanese leader is accused of running a campaign of genocide that killed 35,000 people and at least another 100,000 through a "slow death". During a rare visit to Darfur Sudan's president Omar al-Bashir said he is "not worried" by International Criminal Court accusations ag... more
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Blackwater to leave security business following problems in Iraq
Blackwater, the US private military contractor widely accused of abuse of power in Iraq, is getting out of the security business.
Company executives said they are moving away from security work in the wake of close media scrutiny of private contractors' behaviour in Iraq, particularly a Baghdad shooting involving Blackwater employees that left 17 Iraqi civilians dead. The incident is under investigation by American law enforcement.
"The experience we've had would certainly be a disincentive to any other companies that want to step in and put their entire business at risk,'' Blackwater founder and chief executive Erik Prince told an Associated Press reporter who was given a daylong tour of the company's headquarters.
Anne Tyrrell, a Blackwater spokesman, said the company has not planned any "shift," but rather that the company would grow in other areas besides private security.
"When we are seeking to expand the business we will be doing it in other area," she said. "We don't see that market growing".
Blackwater has made hundreds of millions of dollars off of contracts to guard US state department officials. Its seemingly ubiquitous presence, combined with the larger-than-life personality of the conservative Prince, turned Blackwater into an emblem for the privatised military that the Bush administration relied upon to help wage the Iraq war.
The company also operated under broad legal immunity from criminal prosecution in Iraq, attracting criticism from government officials in Washington as well as Baghdad. The US Congress ultimately passed legislation bringing contracting firms under the American military code of justice.
Blackwater's now plans to focus attention on its expansive rural training facilities. Its North Carolina home attracts swarms of US military, law enforcement and local officials each year.
The company also has expanded its aviation division, which provides airplane and helicopter maintenance and also drops supplies into hard-to-reach military bases. A 6,000-foot runway is under construction and a large map in the company's hanger shows units based across the world, from Africa to the Middle East to Australia.
"Our focus is away from security work. We're just not bidding on it," Blackwater president Gary Jackson told the Associated Press. Blackwater, the US private military contractor widely accused of abuse of power in Iraq, is getting out of the security business. ... more -
Ron Paul moves convention rally to bigger arena
(CNN)— Former Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul is moving forward with plans for his own rally during the Republican National Convention —and is moving his location to a larger arena to accommodate the unprecedented response.
The three day event called ‘Rally for the Republic’ will officially launch Paul’s new political action group: the ‘Campaign for Liberty.’ When planning for the event began earlier this year, it was originally scheduled to take place at the University of Minnesota, but due to a “strong initial response,” it was moved to The Target in Minneapolis, which can house up to 18,000 people.
"The Rally for the Republic will send a powerful, positive message to the Republican Party that there is an army of grassroots activists across the country ready to work with them if steer back to their traditions of limited government and personal liberty," said Campaign for Liberty spokesman Jesse Benton.
Paul, who has often voiced his differing policy views from presumptive Republican nominee John McCain, has made it clear in past interviews with CNN his supporters won’t be in Minneapolis to interfere or cause problems for the Republican Party.
“We’re not going to disrupt them,” Paul told CNN last month. “We’re not going to demonstrate as much as present a positive case for values that we believe should be the Republican values.”
From August 31 through September 1, the former presidential dark horse will hold a series of grassroots leadership and training events culminating with a “celebration of traditional Republican values,” where Grover Norquist, Tucker Carlson, Gov. Gary Johnson, Barry Goldwater Jr. and Bruce Fein are expected to speak. (CNN)— Former Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul is moving forward with plans for his own rally during the Republican National... more -
Russian plans to station nuclear bombers in Cuba
The media has been abuzz today at the prospect of Russian nuclear bombers being stationed in Cuba if the US goes ahead with plans for missile defence bases in Eastern Europe.
The story has riled the US enough that a US general has been wheeled out to tell the world’s press that any Russian attempt to build another nuclear base in Cuba would cross US “red line”.
The story broke earlier this week, when Russian newspaper Izvestia quoted an un-named source from within the Russian military. He told the Russian daily:
“While they are deploying the missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic, our strategic bombers will already be landing in Cuba.”
The quote hasn’t been independently confirmed, but the Russian Defence Ministry added fuel to the fire when they refused to comment on the story.
The prospect of Russian nuclear forces being stationed in Cuba - which is, after all, only 90 miles from the US coast - would bring back some rather unpleasant memories for the US of the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, where the Soviet Union under Nikita Kruschev launched an audacious and foolhardy bid to station nuclear missiles on the Caribbean island.
And so, not surprisingly, the US Air Force has wheeled out a top general to warn Russia off. General Norton Schwartz, who will soon be appointed as the US Air Force’s chief of staff told reporters that:
“If they did I think we should stand strong and indicate that is something that crosses a threshold, crosses a red line for the United States of America.”
So, will Russia actually station nuclear bombers in Cuba?
In all likelihood, this is just another episode in the war of words between Russia and the US over the proposed US missile shield. Russia’s dual leadership of Putin and Medvedev are pragmatic, cautious men, and won’t fancy the chance to repeat the mistakes of the Soviet Union’s most unpredicatble leader.
This is especially true when we consider that the proposed US missile shield doesn’t actually bother Russia all that much - it’s much more important to the Kremlin as an opportunity for Russia to give the US a bit of a verbal bashing every now and then.
Having said that, Russia’s military is in a much more expansive mood these days - witness the first naval patrols in the Arctic since the fall of the Soviet Union, and recent Tu-95 bomber flights near British airspace. It would be no surpise if it is considering how and where on the globe it could place military bases in the longer term.
Russia had a permanent military base in Cuba until quite recently - it was closed in 2002, partly because it was difficult to justify the $200 million per year running costs. But thanks to Russia’s booming economy, the military is much better resourced than it used to be. Perhaps $200 million per year doesn’t seem all that expensive these days for an ambitious country that aspires to global influence but which has fewer international military bases than snaller powers such as France, or the United Kingdon.
One thought that occurs is that, if Cuba’s history makes the prospect of a base there too much of a hot potato, perhaps a base somewhere else in the region would be a better long term bet.
Anyone want to take a bet on a Russian military base being created in Venezuela sometime over the next decade? The media has been abuzz today at the prospect of Russian nuclear bombers being stationed in Cuba if the US goes ahead with plans for ... more -
Barack Obama for District Attorney
A parody of Shepard Fairey's iconic Obama poster, as filtered through Bat-mania.
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EPA Officials Contradict Each Other at Senate Hearing
"Burnett told the panel that Johnson had concluded that California had met the legal requirement for a waiver by showing it faced 'compelling and extraordinary circumstances' in light of the threat that climate change poses to the state.
"There was no reasonable defense of a denial," Burnett said, adding that Johnson had initially agreed to grant California a 'partial waiver' lasting several years.
"Johnson reversed course after consulting with the White House[.]"
"Burnett told the panel that Johnson had concluded that California had met the legal requirement for a waiver by showing it faced 'com... more -
Poverty and bad levees could turn Hurricane Dolly into a "natural disaster" -- jus...
Hurricane Dolly is Category 2 and growing -- and about to hit the Texas-Mexico border, a poverty-stricken region of farm laborers and factory workers who are ill-equipped to face a devastating hurricane. The target area's biggest city -- Brownsville, TX -- has levees that haven't been fortified in 40 years.
If Dolly turns into a "disaster" it will be because of poverty and politics, not nature -- just like New Orleans. Hurricane Dolly is Category 2 and growing -- and about to hit the Texas-Mexico border, a poverty-stricken region of farm laborers and ... more -
Study shows air pollution doing serious harm to ecosystems
If you are living in the eastern United States, the environment around you is being harmed by air pollution. From Adirondack forests and Shenandoah streams to Appalachian wetlands and the Chesapeake Bay, a new report by the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies and The Nature Conservancy has found that air pollution is degrading every major ecosystem type in the northeastern and mid-Atlantic United States.
The report, Threats From Above: Air Pollution Impacts on Ecosystems and Biological Diversity in the Eastern United States, is the first to analyze the large-scale effects that four air pollutants are having across a broad range of habitat types (see inset). The majority of recent studies focus on one individual pollutant. Over 32 experts contributed to the effort; the prognosis is not good.
"Everywhere we looked, we found evidence of air pollution harming natural resources," comments Dr. Gary M. Lovett, an ecologist at the Cary Institute and the lead author of the report. "Decisive action is needed if we plan on preserving functioning ecosystems for future generations."
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This is the world our younger generation will inherit. They must begin to get serious about working to preserve it and to hold this generation accountable for leaving it sustainable. I have always been baffled at how we humans can know doing something is dangerous and toxic to the future and to the present regarding the quality of our air, water, and land, and yet we continue to do it. We cannot continue on this path. This is one of the most important challenges our younger generation will have to face, and I truly wish there was more of an urgency about it. Pollution is not a 'natural' occurence of nature, we are doing it, and only we can make it right. If you are living in the eastern United States, the environment around you is being harmed by air pollution. From Adirondack forests a... more -
Cholera outbreak escalating
The number of people infected by a cholera outbreak in Guinea Bissau doubled in July to more than 600 and infections have spread to areas of the country previously considered low risk, health experts warn.
Of 611 people in Guinea Bissau who have contracted the disease this year, 344 of them were infected in July, according to the government’s statistics. So far 14 people have died. The outbreak has reached Gabu and Bafata, two areas normally immune from infection, and six other regions.
The number of people infected by a cholera outbreak in Guinea Bissau doubled in July to more than 600 and infections have spread to ar... more -
New Citation Option Report Released Today!
Today at noon, we released a report that illustrates how at the apex of the budgeting cycle, and as police union officials negotiate for their labor contract with the City, we don't need more officers. By prioritizing how police respond to offenses, we can save money and improve public safety by keeping officers on the street to address Austin's most serious public safety needs. Today at noon, we released a report that illustrates how at the apex of the budgeting cycle, and as police union officials negotiate f... more
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1 in 4 Americans Fear Hunger as Food Prices Soar
The rapidly increasing cost of food does not just mean higher grocery bills; it means more hungry people. This month, the Alliance to End Hunger released a startling new poll revealing that one in four American voters (28 percent) fear that they or someone they know will go hungry. The rapidly increasing cost of food does not just mean higher grocery bills; it means more hungry people. This month, the Alliance to ... more
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Another US led massacre of civilians planned for Fallujah: Documenting American Wa...
Every time I read a story published in Western mainstream media about what transpired in Fallujah in 2004 during two US assaults on the city I feel sick.
The evidence proving that the United States committed war crimes, slaughtering innocent men, women and children is irrefutable. The US military’s use of chemical weapons is irrefutable. The destruction of a city amounting to collective punishment is irrefutable. All of this occurred because four Blackwater mercenaries were killed by Iraqis who were trying to protect their city from what we now know as “America's Private Army”.
I have tried to understand why Western mainstream media has remained complicit in its coverage and reporting of this event, and I believe I have found the answer. Every time I read a story published in Western mainstream media about what transpired in Fallujah in 2004 during two US assaults on th... more
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